Runescape: The Black Army
by Jet410
Summary: Everyday was a peaceful day where flocks of birds migrate to our lands and rest. The sun shines on our houses everyday with grace. It all was perfect... or so it seemed...
1. The Black Army

Runescape: The Black Army

I never truly knew what I wanted, other than I loved questing on my own. I have never had big tasks… things such as grabbing supplies for some of my family members from long distances.

I know the lands well. Bourne into it, I have gained knowledge of every tree, brush, and weed of this land.

We had a rich colony, full of vibrant colors and vast lands to explore. Our crops were juicy and full of life. Flocks of birds fathered in my yard everyday as we fed them healthy pieces of bread and seeds.

There was much peace with families since we all stayed together in love and friendship. The time was peaceful...

...Or so we thought...

It rained one day. Pouring. It was around 5:00, usually the time the sun was about to set. I wanted to explore the outside world as I do everyday, but all I saw was the water trickling down my window with flashes of lighting every minute or so.

I saw something in the distance, what seemed to look like a small light that glowed orange just over a hill. I squinted my eyes to get a better look. The fire was coming closer, and as I looked, more fire began to pop up. My eyes widened and my heart pounded.

"The Black Army." I whispered heavily. I rushed to my mother's room to find her reading her favourite book. She smiled at me, but she instantly wiped it from her face.

"What's wrong?" I bent my head down knowing what the army was coming for.

"The Black Army has arrived..." My mother gasped and dropped her book in her lap. She threw the covers off of her lap and rushed to the window. I saw the fear crawling in her face.

"No... No, no, no not now!" She exclaimed "Just a little longer..."

"I have no choice mom... We both knew this day would come... it's... for the best."

Tears rolled off both of her cheeks as she grasped me in the tightest hug she had given me for years. I too began to cry. Life seemed shorter than anyone else's at this time.

A minute later we heard knocking at the door. "Open up! We don't want to use force!"

My mother warily opened the door to find a soldier in the thickest, blackest suit of armour made from the thickest steel imaginable. He was holding a written document by a king from another land.

"Your son is seventeen years old now... he must enlist with us as a new soldier of the Black Army. He is commanded to train and fight for us in our battles, and win. Don't worry ma'am... we have done this many times and we DO know how hard it is for you" The guard showed sympathy in his expression while talking.

"He will not instantly go into immediate training... He will have time to explore a new land before he helps us. We will take good care of your son, and by our loyalty, you can trust us when we say you will see your son again one day."

Mother continued crying at the loss of seeing me for a very long time. She looked around the community where the other guards were taking hold of their sons at age seventeen or older.

"I understand" She said. "Just give me one last moment with my baby boy..."

She turned around and instantly gave me a tight hug again. I did the same.

"We both knew this would happen... You have been so good to me and I couldn't be more proud of you. Your father would be proud too. And maybe... you'll see him"

"I know. Dad has been gone for too long now. It would be nice if I saw him again. I WILL return home one day mom. I promise. Don't worry about me, I'll make sure I write to you and let you know how everything is... I love you mom..." A tear rolled down my cheek

"I love you too son..." We let go of each other slowly knowing we won't get to see each other for a very long time... or ever again...

"Let's go soldier." The soldier said.

"Bye mom."

"Bye son."

I made my way out the door still looking back in her direction, glancing at everything that I had in the house. I looked back to my mom one last time that was on the ground crying. The soldier shut the door, and that was the last time I have ever seen her.


	2. Runescape: A New Beginning

I walked over the hill that led to my village in a dazed and dull state. My face pointed towards the ground while my hands were in my pockets fiddling around with a keychain that my father had given me when I was a child.

"Let the memories go for now. They'll only hold you back from your true mission. Try to see it as a brand new opportunity to meet new people and explore newer lands."

"Where are we going?"

"The land has many names. Its majesty fills the world with bewilderment of its powers. It is world full of stones called Runes, about this size" He held up his thumb and index finger in a pinching position to show the size of the miniature magic pebble.

"It's about the size of a rock you would skip on the water, but don't let its size deceive you... These Runes hold power beyond magic that only the most elite and wise can handle... and they never leave those lands... The lands of Runescape."

"Runescape." I repeated.

On the way there I got to know the soldier a little more. There were over one-hundred people trailing behind us, most were sad or angry. We walked over many hills and through many paths that I already knew, until we came to a point where my memory had no track of where we were.

They were woods with odd-looking trees with fine branches and leaves. It seemed to get denser in the forest as I looked beyond the start of the woods. I glanced at the figure and detail of the trees. The veins in the leaves reminded me of our family tree we had at home, but I didn't think too much about it to avoid feeling homesick.

"What is this place?"

"This is the-"

"HALT!" A voiced roared from the rear of the crowd. A man in a golden trimmed black suit of armour stood high on his horse with elegant cloths hanging from his stallion embroidered in black and gold itself. The saddle and straps from a distance seemed to be made of the finest leather around.

"Before we enter these woods... you must know that you CANNOT lose the group. If you do... you will be sucked in to the forest and you will never make it out! There is no other way I could've said it any clearer than that statement." He took his helmet off to show a shameful expression about his face.

"I remember these woods when I was a young lad... I had a best friend named Thomas. We both were borne in the same month and year and had the closest friendship anyone has seen in ages. I lost him in these woods when we were both enlisted in the army... and I never saw him again... You fill follow my orders to prevent this from ever happening to anyone else! Continue!"

We moved west again. I knew it was west from the way the sun was setting just behind some broken up rain clouds.

"That's General Icko. He has been through much more than us. Yes I know you were ripped from your family, but you had preparation time to bear it, but he had everyone taken away from him all at the same time and never saw them again. That's why he and Thomas were such good friends. All they had was each other to look out for."

I stayed quiet as we neared the beginning of the forest. We were only fifty-five feet away.

"Once again! Follow every single one of my orders and all will be alive!" He breathed deeply a couple of times and started again.

"Know this now! When the trees whisper, do not look in their direction! When the roots growl, do not show fear! When the leaves hiss, do not halt, flinch, or hardly blink! Show courage and steadiness! Hold a steady pace throughout the entire pathway hither!"

He pointed with a black blade towards the deceiving beautiful forest.

"You are warriors and this is your first rigorous test! Do not fail, or you fail yourself! MARCH!"

We continued as we did, but the nervousness hit the spine of the spineless and they bunched in together making sure they didn't have to deal with as much as the outskirt crowd did. Some of the "tough ones" held their head straight and only gulped, but didn't fall into the center like everyone else did.

I began to sweat a little, clearing my conscience of any mishaps that might happen. _They can't really be giving us a test that'll leave us behind if we mess up... would they? I mean they need soldiers! They wouldn't let anything happen to us... They couldn't..."_

We entered under two colossal branches hovering over our heads. Everyone was looking dead forward, forcing their eyes to stay straight and ignoring all that is around them. There were distant noises in the woods, sounds of hissing laughter and branches moving, even when no wind was blowing.

One began to cry yelling that he didn't want to go. A soldier had to be firm with him telling him to act like a soldier and that fear might lead to his death in here. He straightened up instantly fearing the thought of death.

I glanced at distant trees as I saw them move, with the vines moving like live snakes. I have never seen this before. This was amazing, and at the same time, terrifying. Magic has always fascinated me, but this was giving me those sick butterfly feelings in my stomach.

The woods became denser, and the light became very limited, yet I could still see the ground. It acted as if it didn't need like to show its path.

Limbs of trees lifted up to let us through, but no one watched it fearing the general's commands. I heard the limbs come down behind the crowd, but before us was a gigantic pathway with tremendous sycamore-shaped trees with vines growing on every inch of their wooded skin.

I felt the roots under my feet begin to move. This must be the first test. I was trying not to step on them fearing that it would make them growl, but I did on accident.

A root slid around my foot and snapped at my leg making a horrible low growl. I didn't shake, but continued to walk at a normal, steady page. The root didn't attack me, but basically tried to startle me, but as I moved on, it seemed to move on and ignore me stepping on it.

"I'm scared." One soldier whispered close to my ear. I passed a side glance at him. I saw a sweat tear drop from his chin. He wasn't shaking thankfully, because if he did, who knows what would happen.

"Yea, life seemed easier back in the community didn't it?" I whispered. He nodded. "What's your name?" He asked.

"Call me Jet. What about you?"

"Xiss." I was pretty intrigued at the originality of the name. I gave a short smile looking forward again.

"We'll get through this. Don't worry."

A loud shriek was heard. The crowd was looking to the left at a boy who was wrapped in vines and shrubs that were protruding out of the thick part of the woods. In an instant, the vines brought him into the woods swiftly through thick brush. There was one last distant scream. It was over.

"Don't look anywhere else! Keep moving! MOVE! We don't have much more to venture through just follow my orders!" Yelled Icko.

_30 minutes later_

It seemed as if the trip took an eternity, but time takes forever when you live in fear. There were no more of us taken away because everyone followed the orders more intently now.

There seemed to be a huge stone with carvings on it near the end of the path. I couldn't make out what it was entirely, but it seemed to be an oversized hourglass and many decorative symbols encircling it. The stone was a clear, dark, smooth grey with the hourglass in a royal blue coating. It was in the shape of a perfect circular shape facing the sky of trees.

The trees sighed around us and every brush, root, and leaf sucked themselves back into the dense part of the forest.

"It is over now. You are all safe. Just ahead of us is what you call a Teleportation Rune Stone. The carvings around it signify it's Laws of boundaries, such as how far it can teleport you and where it can. The stone is one of the most ancient of its kind and it is the very last of its kind."

He stopped his speech as we all approached it. I was near the front, so I had a pretty clear view of it. It was like a lost beautiful peace of craftsmanship just sitting in the deadliest forest imaginable. We all stopped simultaneously just before one could reach the stone.

"Everyone gather around the stone. In a circular form." Everyone obeyed easily.

The general moved his stallion through the crowd slowly toward the stone. Once he reached the stone, he got off of his horse and reached in a hidden pouch that lay under his saddle. He pulled out an ancient book full of mysterious spells and lore of wizards before his time.

He read this for a minute and pulled three pebbles out of his pocket and held them high in one hand while the book was in the other

"_Those are the runes!" _The soldier exclaimed under his breath. He seemed very excited that I got to see them before me. I smiled and watched the general as he stayed silent. He closed his eyes...

There was a force that I could not describe that felt was going in every direction. There was a bluish glow over our heads and a purplish glow below our feet. I was shocked at the sight.

The lights reached for each other bending in many shapes and sizes as they did. There was no sound around us whatsoever. The images of the trees started to disappear to where there were only blue and indigo lights surrounding us in every direction.

The men of the community all waited for half a minute to find that the lights began to disappear. We began to see new images of land that we have never seen before. The soldiers didn't seem to mind it at all.

When the lights faded away, there were vast amounts of villages and mountains in the distance from the cliff that we stood on. We all stood in amazement at the new sight.

"Everyone." Said the general.

"Welcome... To Runescape."


	3. Old Skills, New Prayer?

The trees swayed when the wind blew. The sun was shining brightly on our group with rays that bounced off of the grass to show its beauty. Everyone was astonished at seeing an entire new land right after being teleported from our homeland.

We have never used any magical arts of any kind in our community. They were off limits to our society as we could become corrupt with power and destroy everything we love. They were for the wise and mature only.

"This way everyone" announced Icko. He was in the front this time leading us all down a pathway that led to a fairly big village. Everyone followed.

"Hey." said Xiss. I turned to him to see a relaxed smile on his face. "We made it man. I didn't think I was going to live. That was some thrill huh?"

I laughed a little. I didn't consider that a thrill at all. It was one of the most horrifying things I have ever encountered. I know he was saying that in a humorous manner because he was still frightened, but he was relieved that he didn't have to go through that experience again.

"I didn't think I was going to make it honestly." he said. "I kept shaking nervously and sweat was beating off of my face." He laughed a little.

I smiled a bit from my own relief.

_10 minutes pass by_

"Soldiers, we aren't in the main part of Runescape just yet. You must go through some basic training before we reach the town of Lumbridge. Here you will learn basic Cooking, Mining and Smelting, Managing your bank, Questing Advice, Wizardry, Fishing, Woodcutting, Firemaking, Fighting and Archery. Some of these you might have learned back in your homeland, but there is one Practice here that you might not be too familiar with… This is called Prayer.

"Here in Runescape there are three active gods: Saradomin, the god of wisdom. Zamorak, the god of chaos. And lastly, Guthix, the god of balance. Prayer here is used to reach only these three gods in order to receive extra fighting power when you are in deeper trouble than you can handle.

"Everyone must choose a partner to venture with through this training." Everyone began looking around for people they knew really well. Xiss tapped my shoulder and I nodded to him.

"Follow along this path, but it branches off into other parts. Each part has a new training session waiting for you. There will be signs to guide to which you want to start with first. When you have completed one of the courses, you will be rewarded with a paper of admission to go to Lumbridge. You must return with eight of these in order to continue with us. No one shall fail as these are easy tasks. Am I clear?"

Everyone nodded in agreement and smiled with excitement. It was as if everyone had forgotten their homeland, but who could blame them when there was wizardry and this so called "prayer" to learn and master?

"First off we need to start you off with some new clothes." Icko points to the inside of a fairly decent sized estate. "Inside are some designers that will help you find the right clothes for you to choose from. Go inside and choose which to choose from. They will all cost a very small fee."

Everyone rushed inside quickly with excitement. The designers welcomed them all and showed everyone around with hundreds of pieces of clothes to choose from. Xiss and I traveled to an empty corner in the room. I wasn't very interested in much. Usually what I wore suited me fine. A regular t-shirt and denim jeans with hand-sown leather shoes is what I normally wear.

Xiss was rather eager to find better clothes than what he had. His clothes were fairly ripped and torn. Holes showed his bare knees and the back of his left calf.

I did find something that suited me. There was a black shirt that wasn't too big nor small. I picked it out and put it over what I had on. It was perfect. I waited on Xiss to pick out his suited attire while looking at the other options.

He yanked out what looked like a thin black coat with zipper pockets on each side.

"This is perfect! I've always looked for these but never managed to find one!" He held it up to his chest in order to measure its size and then threw it over his white t-shirt.

"And it's comfortable!" He smiled and looked around the room proud of his new thin coat. "Is that all you're getting?"

"Yea," I said, "usually really simple clothes suit me fine."

A minute later we walked outside to begin our assignment. We saw General Icko talking to one of the elite soldiers. We didn't pay them much attention and walked passed them.

"Well, want to start here?" I asked.

"Yea, this is the closest."

We walked over to a lady who was perched on a stool reading a book. She was sitting next to a pond. We introduced ourselves politely.

"How are you doing today Ma'am? My name is Jet, and this is Xiss." He smiled and waved. She looked up and smiled and said, "Let's begin."

She handed us a small white box. "Keep this with you throughout this training program. Now, wait one moment." We waited as she got up, walked behind a pile of logs and reached for two hatchets on the other side. She came back and handed us the tools."

You may know this skill already, but I will teach you Woodcutting. First off you hold the handle in your writing hand like so." She fashioned her hand in the position to hold the hatchet steady. "Your first two swings must be at a diagonal angle to make your mark, but on your third swing, use a horizontal chop to knock the remaining wood out. I want both of you to bring me back 4 logs and then I'll show you how to use the Tinderbox."

This woman was very straight forward, but that is probably from all of the teaching she does from day to day. We followed her orders and went to some nearby oaks to chop down. Just like she said, we chopped the trees down in the same fashion and brought her the logs in ten minutes.

Back in our hometown, I used to chop logs for my mother in the winter when there was no wood for the fireplace, so this exercise was no problem for me. It seemed Xiss was fairly skilled at lumberjacking himself. It brought back memories of an old friend of mine who I used to woodcut with all of the time for the thrill.

"Very good," she said. "Now take the tinder from inside the box and use it against the wood like so. This is called Firemaking."

Time passes as Jet and Xiss complete their training. They go through everything successfully receiving a pass each time to Lumbridge. They come to their next training session: The Quest Guide.

"Good morrow young ones! I am the Quest Guide and I would like to give you both a few pointers before we begin... First is that there are some quests that are easy and do not require many skills, but heed my warning, for there are some that may cost you your very lives."

We weren't too intimidated about his words. We knew for sure that it wouldn't be easy every time.

"Now every quest starts with someone having a problem. If they need your assistance, you should ask them if they need you for any reason out of courtesy. Depending on what they want, you will have certain requirements in order to fulfill the quest. It seems you two are friends... Am I correct?"

Both: "Yes."

"Jolly good! Friendship is the answer to most problems these days. There is so much war and no soul trusts another... If you two stick with each other like brothers, you can overcome impossible obstacles that are coming your way."

We both listened intently as the quest guide finished what he had to tell us, but as he gave us our passes, he gave us one last warning.

"You two are traveling into a land of many unknown lands... Always venture into the unknown with extreme caution, for there are some forces that cannot be defeated by a mere blade... Be on your way now." He pointed to a trapdoor to the other side of his room. We walked over to it, unlatched the lock, and opened it to find a ladder leading to a semi-lit cave.

We made our way down the ladder and walked down the hallway of rocks and eventually came into a room with nothing but rocks, a furnace, and around five Pickaxes.

"HELLO!!"

Both of us jumped.

"Sorry about that! I'm your Mining Instructor. What is your name good sir?"

"Jet."

"And you?"

"Xiss."

"A very original name indeed! Let's get started shall we?" The instructor walked in another direction and we followed. He picked up two pickaxes and handed them both to us. "Here are your Mining tools. Follow me." He walked us over to some dark-brown rocks.

"Look at these rocks really close. What do you see?" We both looked close

I didn't answer, but Xiss replied. "It's just a brown rock"

"Just a brown rock! Hark!" We both laughed at his way of getting frustrated. "This here is Copper! Look at the details!" He explained on how we could tell the difference between Copper and the Tin across the room.

"Now, with the tools that I have given you, mine me one of each ore." We both did, but as Xiss was mining his last ore, his arm strained and he dropped is pickaxe and squatted. "My arm..."

"What is going on here? Are you lazy?" "No sir, my arm has been bad since I've torn a ligament in it only a month ago."

"Jet." "Yes?" "Mine Xiss's last ore for him."

"You alright man?" "Yea, I just can't mine this last one. The weight of the tool made the pain in my arm return. It won't last long."

I mined the last ore and gave it all to the instructor. "Now! You will learn how to Smith weaponry!" We were both ecstatic about this. I've always wanted to craft my own sword.

He showed us how to properly Smelt the ore together which made a Bronze Bar.

"Now, the best you can, make a dagger by hitting the blade with the hammer that I provided you with."

We both did exactly as he said. We didn't make perfect daggers, but they were a good size and really sturdy.

"Excellent job. You both did fantastically great. Go past these gates to learn your Combat skills. Inside you will meet a master of fighting, named Vannaka.

We proceeded, but with caution, heeding the Quest Guide's warning to make sure they didn't run into any unsuspected trouble at any time during their training.

"We're here to see Sir Vannaka." There was a dark figure across the room sitting on a throne made of thick steel. The figure rose up to be around seven feet tall. First the light shone his steel leggings and the bottom of his massive blade. The next item to appear was a vivid red shield that shined brilliantly with a carving of a silver dragon on the side. As the figure neared, we saw battle scared on the mans chest, and then on his face.

"Weaklings, who sent you?" "General Icko Sir Vannaka. We just made our wa-"

"SILENCE!" His voice roared. He stabbed his blade into the ground and held the head of the handle with both hands. "Do you notice the blade before you?" It had blood stains and battle scratches on it. "Yes we do." I answered.

"This sword hath slain many foes with ease. This sword and fighting TECHNIQUE! You will learn the ways of the sword. Show me what you can do with these basic weapons before you even touch an iron blade..." He handed us a longer, sturdier sword with a circular-shaped shield made from the wood of an Oak.

"Inside that cage are oversized rats that will never die unless you slay them." Xiss and I have never actually killed anything by blade before. I hunted many deer with a bow that that's it.

We made our way inside to find that the rats hated our human scent. Their dark red eyes glared at us with hatred. They dove for us and slashed at us. We stood back to back and slayed most of the rodents easily. We loved the excitement and ignored the blood. Vannaka ripped us out of the cage and instantly handed us a bow and around fifty arrows made from the finest bronze.

"Not all enemies die by the blade, for you may be too far away. Kill them with the equipment that I handed to you. GO!"

We drew back our bows in a perfect fashion. I worried that Xiss would strain his arm again, for I saw him cringe at pulling back the bow. We launched our arrows at different times killing off the remaining demon-like rats. Dead bodies of rodents laid everywhere inside of the cage.

"Amazing. Not a single shot missed!" Vannaka was impressed with our first and final performance of fighting. "Never in my day have I seen two warriors slay these creatures with such ease!" We were a little impressed of ourselves also. We thought they would be more of a challenge.

"Your final task will be a little more difficult. You will learn the arts of Magic. But before you do so, you must meet with Brother Brace to learn the power of Prayer and how to properly use it."

We did and made our way up the ladder that led to the outside. The path that we followed lead to a monastery which was made of a fine dark stone. The windows had glass-stained pictures of heroes and other lore on them.

As we came to the front, there were two massive doors, one which was fully open, showing the inside of the church.

"Welcome brothers! I'm am Brother Brace. I will show you the teachings of what is called Prayer." Brother Brace was wearing finely woven monk clothing with a symbol of a golden cross upon his chest. He led us in to a brightly embroidered altar made of golden silk with golden candles upon it. One book that sat on the table read scripture that I couldn't understand.

"That is the book of the Wisdom god, Saradomin. His teachings will show peace to these lands one day. Now, you are here to learn about the ancient technique of Prayer. With prayer, you gain strength from all of the gods and use them to your advantage." He continued on about how we could use them in battles to protect and strengthen our bodies.

"May Saradomin be with you both in learning proper guidance and teachings as you venture on." He pointed us outside the doors that lead to another stone house that seemed to be surrounded in a white mist. "That is where you will learn the art of Magic. Go now to meet your Magic Tutor."

As we were walking to the house of white mist floating about, Xiss spoke to me.

"There seems to be so much to learn. I'm learning with ease though, what about you?" "Yea I am! This is really beginning to interest me. I'm too excited."

"Yea."

We came to the mist but stopped before we reached the door.

"We're here to see the-"

The doors of the house flew open as wind rushed passed our bodies with our clothes flowing with the wind. The gust eventually came to an end. "Enter..." said a dark voice.

We came in with caution as the doors shut behind us. There was no light at all along with absolute silence. A light grew from across the room, which lit up only enough of the room to see a figure standing next to the wall. "Welcome to my dwelling... I'm sure you are here to hear the secrets of Magic." "Yes sir-" "IT IS NOT EASY and is a sacred art that must NOT be abused in any way or fashion or all could become corrupt and vanquish from existence!" we both gulped. I didn't want to use this power for evil, but the thought of washing away all that existed had my mind in fear.

"Your mind must remain balanced and you must have thought of clarity! Magic should never be rushed! The power must flow through your robes and your body. Now, you must know that magic can be tainted and can be destroyed depending on your wear. Now, put these on."

He handed us both two sets of dark blue robes that were light as air but as thick as a coat. We did as he said.

"These will enhance your magic ability and will guide the magic flow outside of your body into your very hands. Your movements determine the flow of the magic and the direction it will move in once casted. Are there any questions before we begin?"

"I do have one request sir." I said. "What is it?" "Will we be getting a book on how to properly use these spells?"

"Yes! The basic spell is first and is easy to cast and requires no need to knowledge, but the others are for the intermediate and masters. That is when you will use your book. Now, wait here."

It seemed that every tutor had to run and get supplies as if they didn't know we were coming. We waited patiently as he went through one of his old chests. It had a small glow emitted from the inside. He pulled out something and put it in his pocket then shut the chest.

"Do you know why these lands are called the lands of Runescape?"

"No sir." We both admitted.

"Many years ago there was a secret that was hidden from us. There was a place full of blank white unbreakable stones called Essence. These stones could hold magic inside of them without unleashing it unintentionally. Someone got a grasp of these magical stones and used them for their own purposes.

"They took these stones and made carved symbols on them. They were still just blank stones, until one day when a high master wizard used a spell and cast it into the stone. The stone glowed with a bright white. When it stopped, the stone carvings had a white glow to it and nothing else.

They were amazed at the sight and began making many of them all throughout these lands. They didn't have a name for these magical stones, but they were for magical use, so they gave them their proper name. Runes. That is why they call these lands the lands of Runescape.

"There are still ones today that still obtain these blank runes and use magic to create their own runes. This is a skill that is far beyond you two... for now..."

We were riddled with excitement knowing that there were still other skills that existed that we could master. I wanted to leave this island and search for these other existing skills.

"Now, are you two ready to use these Runes that I have in my hand?" He pulled his hand out of his robe pocket and held out four stone pebbles. They were the size of a quarter, but they were as thick as five quarters stacked on top of each other.

"Those are the runes?!" Asked Xiss. "Yes, these are the sacred stones with magical carvings in them, but do not call them mere runes, for they do have a name for each symbol, and they do represent a meaning for each carving."

He took one of the runes from his hand and showed the one that was glowing white.

"Yes, this is the first rune that was made. Ahem, pardon me, this isn't the first one made, but is the image of the first one made. It originated from the first ones. It is called the Rune of Air or Air Rune for short." He took his hand and pulled out the other one that had a glowing orange ring around it with three dark dots in the middle. "This is the Rune of Mind or Mind Rune. This helps you concentrate on what spell you will use in the act of combat."

We were both fully interested with out mouths agape looking at the masterpiece.

"Now, are you ready to learn how to cast the spell called Air Strike?"

"YES!" We both exclaimed. "Not so loud! You'll disturb the peace!"

"Sorry." We said.

He handed us one of each rune and showed us the proper way to hold them.

"You must first grasp the stones in your hand with a firm hold in order to feel the power flow through your body. After you feel the power, bring your hands together,

leaving the runes grasped, and your other hand acting as if it is about to cover the rune-holding hand. Do not put your hands together for the force will push away your freehand. Just hold it right in front of the runes like so."

He showed us by clenching his fist with his left hand and hovered his free hand in the shape of a letter "c" in front of the other like he said.

"There will be a light glow from your hands. This signifies that the spell is about to release and come into the palm of your free hand. The spell will release from your rune hand and form a ball in your palm. Once it is in your palm, you may hold it there for as long as you like until ready for use. Now, do as I just told you to see if you were paying attention."

We both obeyed. Xiss and I were trying to stay at the same pace to make sure there were no mistakes. We both took the runes in our left hand and clenched them into a ball. We heard the stones rubbing against each other smoothly.

We felt a rush of power run through our bodies. The robes helped us keep sort of a... balance with the spell. We hovered our free hand next to our rune hand and left it there. There was an ease with this and there seemed to be more peace around us. We both closed our eyes.

The air slowly sucked in toward our hands and began to glow. The glow quickly became a ball of light in our hands. Our eyes shot open to see the masterpiece we created within out hands. Our hands stayed still as we looked at the beautiful light. Our mouths were more agape than ever. Never before had we ever held a glowing piece of air in our very own hands. We have only heard of lore and legends about things like this, and we were very skeptical about it.

"Wonderful. You now have the power of the spelled called Air Strike. This is the most basic form of combat Magic. Now, are you ready to use it?"

We both shot our faces toward the wizard. "Yes sir." We said.

"Excellent. Follow me." We followed him and used the light of the spell to see where he was going. He led us down a couple of halls and stopped. We heard hissing and movement.

"What is that noise?" I asked.

"You will see..." The wizard lifted his staff that glowed into a bright red. The light shot out in many directions, which lit every candle on his chandelier in the room. The hissing came from what looked like chickens, but these weren't ordinary chickens. They growled, hissed, and moved about in such a violent manner behind a steel cage. Their eyes, like the rats, had a red shade to them.

"These are rats of Zamorack. They can be killed with the spell that you have in your hands. With your eyes, look for a target to eliminate. The spell will follow the target that you are looking at and will destroy it."

We both picked out separate demon chickens to kill. "We're ready."

"Lift your arms out in front of you as if you were pushing a door open."

We did so, and as we did, the glow shot from our hands in such a flash and landed on our targets. The glow exploded in a white glow, then disappeared. There was nothing left but feathers lying on the ground when the spell was over with.

"Congratulations. You have easily mastered the Air Strike Magic spell." He walked over to a closet while we were dazed at the sight that we just beheld. He dug around in it for a minute and pulled out two thick books. He blew the dust off of them.

"Here, these are the books of the Magic Arts. These will show you the proper ways to cast a spell along with what is required to cast them and what staves to use."

He handed us the books and stood in front of us with a serious expression about his face.

"You boys are on a perilous journey... There is so much for you two to learn before you can even think about battle. This was your final task and you did beautifully and I couldn't be more proud. Use everything you have learned on this island and use them wisely and diligently.

"There are quests and tasks that await you beyond this island. They will not be easy, I warn you... This is all the information I can give you, and I wish you two and the rest the best of luck in the fight for freedom...

"Now, go give your certificates to the general then meet back with me here. He is waiting for you at the bridge."

He led us out of the door and pointed us to him. We walked over to the General and showed him our certificates.

"We accomplished our basic training sir." I said. "Xiss and I are ready."

"Amazing, you both did this in record time! You both are the first to finish first! Excellent work! You have permission to go to Lumbridge. Go back to the wizard as he will get you there."

"Yes sir." We said respectfully and made our way back to the wizard's fog-dense house. He was waiting for us outside of his residence.

"Are you ready to go to Lumbridge and start your journey?"

"Yes sir."

"I wish you the best of luck on your quest and war. You two did excellent today. May Saradomin be with you throughout your entire journey..."

As he finished, he raised both of his hands, with his right hand grasping the staff with a meraculous glowing red orb on the top.

A bright light began encircling us. It glowed all around us with majesty. Me and Xiss knew instantly that our minds are empty compared to what we were going to learn as soon as we got there. Never did any dreams come as close to this beautiful sight. We were dazed with astonishment.

As the light began to fade away, a new world began to show its face. We began to see people in different knightly armors, various clothes, wearing varieties of jewelry. Each had its own significant glow to it.

As more light faded, we began to see the castle in which we were in. Just in front of us were two amazingly huge doors that were open allowing anyone in or out. Around the doors were a dark grey stone wall shielding everything on the inside. The grass was a vivid green as the sun was pouring rays onto the blades.

People gathered in groups talking about various quests they have been on. Others were meeting old friends that they haven't seen in ages.

The lands around us just seemed too much to us. We didn't know where to begin or when to begin. We stood astonished at everything around us. This was nothing like our community. This, was the superior town, of Lumbridge.


End file.
